Healthcare strategy is easy. Delivering it is hard.
I help healthcare organisations turn growth plans into operational reality — across patient access, service design, commercial models, and UK ↔ US expansion.
Built inside healthcare. Operator first. Consultant second.
Clarendum is led personally by Ian McPhee — a senior healthcare operator who has spent his career running, scaling, and rebuilding the functions that growth depends on.
- Former Vice President of Operations at Optum Behavioural Care, part of United Health Group
- Built and scaled national patient access operations supporting 236 clinics across 30 states
- Led international expansion for a boutique behavioural health provider across the UK, United States, and Canada
The decisions and bottlenecks I get called in on.
Entering the US healthcare market
Cutting through payer, regulatory, and buyer complexity to a credible entry plan.
Patient access bottlenecks
Closing the gap between demand and booked, retained patients.
Referral and conversion challenges
Designing the intake, triage, and follow-up that actually convert enquiries.
Operational scaling problems
Building workflows, capacity, and capability that hold up as volume grows.
Investor readiness and operational due diligence
An operator's view of the business behind the financial model.
New service line launches
Standing up clinical and operational delivery from concept to live service.
Problems solved, not activities sold.
Enter and scale in the US healthcare market
Move from interest to a credible US entry plan — payer routes, regulatory realities, buyer mapping, and a sequencing decision the board can act on.
Turn demand into revenue
Close the gap between enquiries and booked, retained patients with pricing, packaging, partnerships, and conversion-focused commercial design.
Make growth operationally workable
Patient access, workflows, capacity, and service design that hold up as volume increases — without breaking clinical quality or team capacity.
Senior operating support without a full-time hire
Fractional COO, interim operations leadership, and board-level input during growth, expansion, or transition — direct access, no junior team.
What the work usually looks like.
A short snapshot of recent and representative engagements - the kinds of decisions Clarendum is built around.
Digital Mental Health Platform Evaluating US Expansion
- Challenge
- A UK digital mental health business with strong traction needed to decide whether, when, and how to enter the US.
- Approach
- Market sizing, payer and buyer mapping, regulatory review, and a structured go/no-go framework with sequencing options.
- Outcome
- A clear, evidence-backed recommendation and a phased entry plan the board could act on.
Private Healthcare Provider Redesigning Patient Access
- Challenge
- Strong demand was being lost between enquiry and booking, capping the growth of an otherwise healthy service.
- Approach
- End-to-end pathway mapping, intake and triage redesign, capacity modelling, and operational performance metrics.
- Outcome
- Improved conversion, shorter time-to-care, and a more scalable access function ready for further growth.
Investor Conducting Operational Diligence on a Healthcare Asset
- Challenge
- An investor needed an operator's view on a healthcare asset beyond the financial diligence pack.
- Approach
- Operational, clinical capacity, and access-pathway diligence with a clear summary of risks, upside, and execution requirements.
- Outcome
- A sharper investment thesis and a 100-day operating plan to de-risk post-close execution.
- Discovery engagements
- £5,000 – £10,000
- Strategic projects
- £10,000 – £25,000+
- Fractional advisory
- Monthly retainer
Every engagement is tailored to the decision, complexity, and level of support required.
An operator on your side — not a deck and a junior team.
Operator first, consultant second
Recommendations are shaped by what it actually takes to run, scale, and deliver healthcare services.
Direct access to Ian
You work with the senior person who scoped the engagement. Every conversation, every deliverable.
No junior consultants
No layered project teams writing decks they've never lived. One senior operator, focused on your decision.
Experience scaling healthcare services
236-clinic national network, 150+ person patient access organisation, UK ↔ US service growth.
Grounded in operational reality
Advice is tested against capacity, workforce, clinical quality, and unit economics — not just market opportunity.
Built for healthcare leadership
Founders, executives, and investors who need a senior thinking partner, not a procurement process.
The kind of work behind the advice.
Clinics supported across the US in a national behavioural health network.
Person patient access organisation built and scaled from the ground up.
US states covered by the operations function led at Optum Behavioural Care.
Healthcare growth, expansion, and operating model design across both systems.
Clarendum is best suited for:
- Healthtech founders
- Mental health and behavioural health organisations
- Private healthcare providers
- Digital health and care businesses
- Investors evaluating healthcare opportunities
- Leadership teams preparing for growth or expansion
Common questions.
If your question isn't here, the fastest answer is usually a short intro call.
What does Clarendum Consulting do?+
Clarendum is an operator-led healthcare advisory practice helping organisations grow, scale, and expand across the UK and US - covering commercial strategy, healthcare operations, patient access, and UK ↔ US healthcare expansion.
Who is Clarendum for?+
Healthtech founders, mental and behavioural health organisations, private healthcare providers, digital health businesses, and investors evaluating healthcare opportunities or preparing for growth and expansion.
How is Clarendum different from a traditional strategy consultancy?+
Clarendum is operator first, consultant second. Ian McPhee has actually run and scaled healthcare operations as a former VP of Operations at Optum Behavioural Care, leading a 236-clinic national network and building a 150+ person patient access centre - so plans are shaped by execution experience, not just frameworks.
How much do engagements cost?+
Discovery engagements are typically £5,000–£10,000, strategic projects £10,000–£25,000+, and fractional advisory runs on a monthly retainer. Every engagement is tailored to the decision, complexity, and level of support required.
Do you work with both UK and US healthcare organisations?+
Yes. Clarendum specialises in supporting organisations operating in, or expanding between, the UK's and US healthcare systems - including the commercial, operational, and regulatory realities of each.
Need a clear plan before making your next move?
Book an introductory call to discuss your goals, current challenges, and where Clarendum may be able to help.
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